Today I was wandering the woods and stumbled upon the surreptious bloom of bloodroot, Sanguinaria canadensis.
There is much folklore, Native American historical uses, and purposed medicinal information (some quite dangerous) floating around about this plant.
In our general area, southern Indiana/western Kentucky, it sprouts mid-march, blooming for only a day or two in the same month, leaving the greenery to grow the rest of the warm season.
Bloodroot is one of those plants that people easily walk past. Low to the ground and not exactly spectactular, it hides amongst the mayapples (Podophyllum peltatum) and other short spring plants before being hidden by scrubland.
Its root-like rhisome releases a bright red sap, hence the name, when cut or broken. It's HIGHLY recommended that you handle with gloves as people can have a severe skin reaction when handling it.
Add comment